Pokemon XYZ: Stars and Spies
by Theboyboy
Summary: Ash and his friends have arrived in Lumiose City before the Kalos league, just in time for the annual Kalos Music Festival. Here, Ash is reunited with an old friend, Atticus, a famous Kalos rockstar. But pretty soon, odd things start to happen, and it's up to Ash to save his friends as well as all of Lumiose City! (work in progress, please follow for chapter updates)
1. Prologue

PROLOGUE:

All but two lights were off at the Vainheart Mansion that night. One light belonged to the living room, where the Carbinks cleaned the leftovers of the party that night.

They didn't see a shadow slip in.

The other light was for the the room of the Baron's youngest son, Victor, where he sat up in his bed, reading a very old book. It was a dark yellow, with a jet black spine, which bore the words "The Stars of Lightning" on it.

If Victor's mother knew that he was up at this hour, he would surely be kept in his room for at least a week. This didn't faze him, however, as he had been forced to stay in his room for basically all fourteen years of his life. He had a rare condition, his parents said, which meant he should stay in his room as much as possible. He looked at the time. 1AM. He decided it was time to turn in for the night.

But, at that moment, he heard something. It was loud, very loud, and sounded like a roar. Victor didn't stop to wonder why nobody else had been woken up by it, as he slowly tiptoed up the stairs, past the snoring Carbinks (Victor had never been allowed near Pokémon for his own safety) , past his parents, up to the rooftop.

He couldn't have seen the figure sneak past.

When he got up there, he was stopped in his tracks. Before him was a bolt of lightning. It was like any other lightning, except that it was still there, constantly striking at an antennae. It glowed as yellow as the sun itself. Victor found himself walking towards it, his pale hands reached out to try and take hold of it, and then...

and then...

"I, um, can't really remember the rest..."

It was dawn now, and Victor's father was up on the roof, looking at his son.

"My dear boy..." the Baron began, looking at a flock of Fletching fly by, "You have experienced something truly special. How do you feel?"

"I feel..." Victor began, and then paused. How did he feel? He felt cold, as usual, but he also felt something new, deep within him. It was odd, like it had always been there but he had never known, a new voice, almost telling him something. He spoke the words aloud:

"Conquer the Lightning"

"For a moment, his father stared, then smiled. He muttered, rather loudly it seemed, "At long last".

Neither of them noticed a white head duck down from the roof. The white figure was floating in midair, just below the roof, his purple tail keeping him held up.

In all his years, Mewtwo never thought he would hear those words again.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: The Kalos Music Festival

'Our heroes have at last returned to Lumiose City, site of the Kalos League, but also to pay a visit to their friend Professor Sycamore.'

"Three weeks!" Ash said cheerfully, practically bouncing down the road like a Spoink. His close friend Pikachu came running after him, both blissfully unaware of all the people watching. Bonnie, Clement and Serena all walked behind him. They had got used to Ash's spontaneous nature, but they were all still impressed by his seemingly limitless energy. "Three weeks until the Kalos League!" he reiotrated, skidding along the floor to a halt.

"We know that, Ash," Bonnie chirped, "You've been saying it all day!" Squishy, tucked into her bag, wriggled into the opening, Dedenne next to him.

"Well, I can't wait to tell Professor Sycamore all about Ash and Greninja" Clement said, "He may be able to offer some insight into your power." At that point, they came to a very large crowd looking at a billboard. They could all hear whispers:

'It's so soon! I can't believe it!'

'Just before the League! What a tight schedule!'

'I wonder if they will be there...Yes, they are!'

Ash started towards the crowd. He excuse me'd and sorry'ed his way through the crowd to see what they were gaping at. Before him and his friends was a large purple poster, with lighting running down each side. At the top, in electric font, ran the words 'Kalos Music Festival'. While Serena, Bonnie and Clement's eyes were at the information on the poster, Ash's eyes looked at one of the people on the poster. He slowly raised a finger.

The boy on the poster looked a few years older than Ash, with a blue and white guitar to match his hair. He was grinning wildly, as if just being there put him at the top of the world.

"That guy there..." Ash began... "He looks familiar... "

Serena stepped next to him to look for herself. "Well of course he should, " Serena said finally, "that's the lead singer of Shockbuster, the-"

"The Greatest Band in Kalos!" a voice rang out. The two looked away from the poster, it was Professor Sycamore.

"How are you all? I see you've found out about the Music Festival."

"Yeah, we have..." Ash said distantly. He wracked his brain. He knew that guy, but for some reason, he couldn't put a name to him...

"Why don't you all come with me? I'll show you where the thing's being held."

Sycamore beckoned them to follow. Ash took one last look at the poster, furious at himself for not remembering the guitarist's name, then followed his friends.

"The Kalos Festival," Sycamore began, "is a great event held once every decade. It invites musicians of all types from all parts of the world to come and perform. Now, there is a competition to enter too, for younger musicians, where the winner will receive fame and enough money to start a fully-fledged music career. Of course, nowadays, what with the internet and all, its mainly about seeing which bands have the most potential. "

They were being driven past Prism Tower, when Pikachu saw something in the sky that caught his eye.

"Pika Pika!"

" Look! " Ash cried," it's Articuno! "

And so it was. Swooping down, the great bird soared around the tower, his majestic wings sprinkling snowflakes onto the stone below. It then veered off, heading eastward.

"The Bird trio usually show up at this time of year."Clement said, eyeing the crystals that Articuno left behind."But nobody knows why. It's a real mystery..."

"We're Here!"

They got out of the car. They were in the very outskirts of Lumiose City, and were greeted by a large purple building, the likes of which they had never seen before. It was about as wide as two football pitches, but with a tower at the far end of it that almost touched the clouds.

"It's the Music Village!" Sycamore said, beaming. "Shall we look inside?"

They passed a large sign that read:

Music Village

Funded by Baron Vainheart

"The Vainhearts really spiced things up this year," Serena explained to Ash, "to try and get more people into it. I suppose it worked."

After passing through a large tunnel, they were struck by the sun yet again, as before them stood a vibrant, bustling market. The stands were packed with items and instruments, ranging from harmonicas to guitars and keyboards. Bands were playing, each song somehow mixing to create a supreme melody. People and Pokémon relished in the sunlight. And there, at the very end of the street, stood the main building. It was a lighter shade of purple than the walls and the tower jutting out behind it, but it was making the most noise out of anything else. It looked like a Seashell, it's shape curving and bending. Perhaps this was why bright yellow words hung in midair above its doors spelling out The Shell.

The word, if any, was loud.

Ash said what everyone else was thinking. "Wow."


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2:** **Sparks and Strangers**

The group started to head down the main street. As they did, they heard a caw that struck over even the Shell's music. Dedenne looked up, and was the first to see Moltres. The great bird twirled in the air, leaving this time embers that burnt out before touching the ground below. It then swooped down, flying off in the direction Articuno went.

"So, does this mean Zapdos will show up soon?" Ash asked Sycamore.

"Of course, it's usual for them all to sleep in the same place while here." Sycamore replied. While they talked and gazed in awe at the village, they didn't see a blue lump jutting out of an alley.

"Wobuffet! Keep your head down!" Jessie whispered. "We don't want the twerps knowing we're here yet!"

"But, Jessie," said Meowth. "why can't we just enjoy ourselves for once without trying to catch Pikachu?"

"How unlike you Meowth! Are you really suggesting we give up?"

"Well, no," James chimed in, "But we are saying that we should stop stalking the twerps and maybe take Pikachu if an opportunity to do so arrives."

"And if the opportunity doesn't arrive?"

"Well, we'll do what we always do, swoop in at the end and take him there." Meowth said, as if this ended the argument.

After looking at everything the village had (and also watching an excellent performance from a Belossom) they came to the Shell. "It's hard to believe that all this was built in just a year." Clement said, gaping at the size of the Tower. "They say," he continued, "that the Shell and the Tower were both designed by the Baron's youngest Son, Victor Vainheart."

Ash, meanwhile was still in deep thought. He definitely knew that person from somewhere, if only he could remember. He tried to order his thoughts. Wherever he met him, he thought, it must have been before he met Pikachu. He knew that much for definite. "Ash?" Serena waved her hand in front of his face.

"I-I'm fine, don't worry."

They entered the Shell. The walls glowed a bright yellow thanks to the sunlight streaming in from the large windows, laving nowhere in darkness. Posters covered the back wall,however, and Ash's eyes were yet again drawn to the white haired guitarist. This time,however, he was side by side with a Decidueye. Another clue. He realised that he was dragging behind, however, and decided to figure out who the person was later on. Sycamore had booked the group rooms within the Shell, so they headed up a massive escalator. to the left of them, while ascending, they could see to the left of him the main theatre. There must have been at least 5,000 seats, each one either a shade of red, blue, or yellow. The stage was illuminated in a bright green, and it looked like one of the bands that were in the poster were doing a sound check. They came to the top of the escalator, still able to see the stage. Looking up, Clement saw the interior of the Shell design. Something felt off about it. Along the grooves, there appeared to be circuitry running down to the stage. However, this was put out of Clement's mind when they came to their rooms.

"You've been booked here for the entire festival," he said, adding, " don't worry, the rooms are soundproof."

Ash entered his room and sat down on the bed. The duvet was white, with a bolt of lightning striking across. Ash felt confused. He was in the greatest place on Earth, but couldn't truly be happy. Not until he figured out who that person was. Pikachu realised this too, so quickly ran downstairs to see when Shockbuster would be performing. Just as he was about to take a leaflet,a man came up to him. He had purple hair, and was wearing a blue suit and bow tie, with the Vainheart coat of arms on it. He bent down and whispered "Your trainer is right to worry. I'll see what I can do." He then stood up, and left. But as he turned, Pikachu was sure he heard something go _swish_ behind the servant. Pikachu thought nothing of it, however, and picked up a red leaflet from the stand. Carrying it in his mouth, Pikachu bounded up the Escalator, into Ash's room. He was staring out the window, pointing a finger at something.

"Pikachu, get over here and look! It's Zapdos!"

There,indeed, was Zapdos. He released sparks of electricity upon the village, then proceeded to fly around the tower and then fly off, presumably to meet with Articuno and Moltres. Ash looked at Pikachu. A spark had landed on the mouse's head, which had made all it's hairs stand on their ends. This put a massive smile on Ash's face, as the two burst out laughing. Pikachu sighed. It would be alright, he thought. As long as Ash was in high spirits, the world had order. That had been his frame of mind for a very long time, and it was Ash's frame of mind for Pikachu.

Pikachu gave Ash the leaflet. After a minute or two, Ash called over Pikachu. He pointed to the timetable, where it read:

' _Day 1: 20:00: Round 1 of Kalos Comptetition. Flamethrower, Shockbuster, The Dusknoirs and EyeDive will perform. The winner will be decided by a panel of judges.'_

"Ah ha!" Ash said triumphantly, "Maybe seeing him play will jog my memory!"

At that moment, Greninja decided to come out of his Pokeball. It appeared he wanted to come with them. Well then, he thought, they must be good.

"Trust me Ash, they're amazing!" Bonnie yelled in his ear for the fifth time. They took their seats in the main stage. Pikachu looked to his right. Next to Serena was the purple haired man who talked to him earlier. With him were three others, one with red hair, one with blue, and the other yellow. At last, the lights dimmed. The show was about to begin.

"Welcome, everyone, to the 25th Kalos Music Festival!"

A man walked slowly towards the centre of the stage. He had a green suit, but with a cape of a darker hue.

"My name is John Vainheart, and I shall be your host for this evening. Tonight, four fine groups of musicians will perform for us. They will then be judged by, well, our judges!" A new spotlight shone upon three people sitting at a long, glass table.

"Roxie of Unova!"

"Officer Jenny of Viridian City!"

"Aaand...Wattson of Hoenn!"

The crowd cheered the judges. Every seat was filled, and at last, the competition began.

They began listening to Flamethrower play, the Darmanitan was very good on drums, but Serena's ears were somehow drawn to the people next to them.

"Are you sure you've done it?" the red haired one asked.

"Not so loud!" the blue one hissed. "He's right there!"

"I've lowered the barrier, don't worry" the purple one whispered, "it'll all run smoothly. We just need to wait until Shockbuster play."

At this point, Greninja had noticed the men's strange conversation, and so Ash, while not knowing how, could hear... something.

"I hate this. I need to stretch." the yellow haired guy complained.

"Get used to it. You'll be wearing it all week." the blue one said.

"Why are we even here? Can't we let the humans have their concert in peace?" asked the red one.

"Because something strange is happening here, and we need to get to the bottom of it. I fear that the Exiles will return."

Question after question bombarded Serena. Who are the Exiles? Why did they say 'the humans'? Bonnie broke her concentration, however, with a loud

"It's THEM!"

And them it was: a Decidueye began on bass, followed by a Magnezone joining in on drums. Then, a girl on keyboard began the melody, and at last Ash saw the blue and white singer take centre stage. His guitar shined out amongst the darkness, almost as if it were a source of light itself. He and the girl looked at each other, and at last they began to sing.

As the first syllables spread out across the Shell, the identity of the singer came to him, like a flash of lightning. Rapidly, memories came flooding back of times before he set off on his adventure, before he even met Serena...

Ash rose towards them and said what he had hoped to say all day:

"I rememember who he is!"

 _"It's Atticus Kaleno!"_

Serena looked at the purple haired man, and saw him mouth the word "Gotcha."


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: The Reunion**

At this point, everyone in the theatre was on their feet. Every single part of the song had clearly been practiced to perfection, but the crowning jewel was Atticus. To say he thoroughly shocked the room was an understatement. He appeared to be playing two riffs simultaneously, and his fingers seemed to have mind's of their own. Despite this, his face was kept totally calm. While he practically span around the stage (in fact, Bonnie was sure she saw his feet leave the floor and hang in midair) his face remained perfectly still. By the end of the song, he was grinning like mad, but looked as if all he had done was go for a light jog. Even the strange people next to Serena had stood up by the end. Unquestionably, they qualified to the next round.

As the band were heading back to their rooms (also within the Shell), Ash and the others were suddenly caught in a whirlpool of fans, begging for autographs. The Press, in particular, as well as many other famous performers, seemed to be the most aggressive in trying to get a picture. Despite the chaos that ensued, Ash could hear Clement complaining. "It's typical," he yelled, not breaking the noise of the crowd, "Rockstars create so much buzz but don't really know much about the real-"

"Shut up!" Bonnie screeched.

Ash was determined, however, to get to Atticus. He vaulted an Electabuzz, dodged past three Palpitoads, and ducked past a very familiar pair with blue and purple hair, with two companions, one yellow and the other blue. Pikachu clinged on for dear life. Serena attempted fruitlessly to pull Ash back, with cries of "Are you sure you know him? It's really unlikely you do!" But at last, Ash got to the very front of the crowd. He could see all of Shockbuster, Decidueye looking amazed at the crowd. As they slowly tried to get through, Ash took his chance.

"Atticus! It's me!"

Against all odds, Atticus heard Ash over the kerfuffle. He stopped, looked around, and saw the ten-year-old and his Pikachu.

"Ash!" he yelled, immediately dashing over. The crowd stopped and fell silent. Why was he talking to this nobody? The others got to the front to see the duo participating in what was the most complex secret handshake ever.

"How have you been?" Atticus said hoarsely, (his voice was still sore from the performance) "I see you got a Pikachu. Did you finally become a trainer?"

"Yup!" Ash said cheerfully, as if this was a normal conversation, one not being watched by millions across the world. Bonnie looked flabbergasted. "Ash? You know Atticus Kalo?"

"So, you finally did it!" Ash continued, "You always said you'd be a famous singer, and look at you now!"

Atticus smiled. He looked about a few years older than Ash, and they seemed to share that glow of optimism. At this point, the other band members decided to see what their band leader was doing. Atticus, not recognising their confusion, turned yet again to Ash.

"Oh, yeah, you probably haven't met the others. Let's see, you've got Magnezone on drums" (Magnezone whirred happily) "My good friend Decidueye"(The owl Pokémon hooted) "and, of course, Megan."

The girl who was on keyboard stepped forward and waved. She had blonde hair, green eyes, and like her other band members looked rather tired after their performance.

"Come on, I'll take you to our rooms. Is it just you?" Atticus asked.

"Ah! No!" Ash said, as if he had just remembered the others existed. He beckoned them over, and they started to leave. The crowd exploded yet again, but this time it took no time at all to get them all out of the Shell. As they came up to Shockbuster's house (also within the confines of the great purple wall) Bonnie looked as if she was about to faint. At long last, she asked,timidly, "H-how did you perform two riffs at once?"

Atticus, however, looked as if he were dying to hear someone ask him that question, as with a "Follow Me!" he strode into his room and opened the case he was carrying on his back. Inside was his guitar, still shining brightly. For a second they all stared, until Ash finally pointed out the obvious. "It doesn't have any strings!"

Atticus was beaming. The conversation was going exactly as he thought it would. "Yeah, I had to get rid of them. Wasn't enough room" he said, nonchalantly. Clement attempted to reason with Atticus, "But even if you did do that, which admittedly, would allow for more complex chords, how did you make it do so much at once?"

"Simple" Atticus replied. He put his hand up to his ear, and pulled out what looked like a single earphone. "I linked the guitar to my brain."

This appeared news to Megan too, who, seemingly used to advances like this, smiled. "You could have at least told us before you plugged that into your brain."

"But it's not plugged in, is it?" Clement responded, "it just reads your brainwaves.

But how?"

It worked like this. The pod in Atticus' ear detected what he wanted the guitar to do. It then relayed this information to the guitar, which changed its mode accordingly.

"I had to do an awful lot of programming to get everything I would ever need and more into there." Atticus finished, patting his grand creation. After a while, Ash and the others had to go back to the Shell, but were welcome to return anytime. As they returned, however, Serena saw the purple haired man from earlier run off." What is it? "Bonnie asked.

" Nothing, I just forgot something"Serena lied.

As she paced back, she looked around to see the others disappear, then followed the purple man, staying out of sight. Around the corner were the three others; they each looked expectant for something. At that point, Serena looked down. Pikachu was there too, listening silently.

"I must say," the blue haired one began, "You really have annoyed them this time."

"Indeed" replied Purple, "and they have no way of knowing that it either me, or you three, had any hand in it."

"Good," Yellow cutted in, "Because for a while I was rather worried. It is, of course, our lives on the line, isn't it?"

Purple nodded. "Worry not. The enemy still believe you are in the forest. Jogging Ash's memory was the first step in stopping this scheme."

As they ended their conversation, Serena and Pikachu both began to creep back, though not before hearing:

"You know, while they may be trying to kill us,"

"Yes?"

"You must admit... The Vainhearts do have style."


	5. Chapter 4

**A/N: Apologies for the long wait, I'll try to get chapters out more often.**

 **Chapter 4: Bagon** **and the Battle**

Ash opened his eyes. He was in bed, and Pikachu was still asleep. He looked at the time. 6.00AM. Something was horribly wrong. Ash had never got up this early ever. He wondered what may have caused it. Perhaps it was the hotel bed, he thought at first, but then he remembered he had slept in sleeping bags basically nonstop since becoming a trainer, so hotel beds would be a luxury. He crept out of bed, careful to not wake anyone else. He didn't feel particularly tired either, just a little fuzzy in the head. He eventually decided to peek outside and see if the sun was up.

It was indeed up, the sky cloudless and a mesh of oranges and blues. The Village was silent, the lights off, the streets empty. Almost empty. Ash could hear the taps of little feet slowly making their way around. It seemed to be coming from behind the houses. Ash assumed it was a Pokémon, though of what sort he was unsure. He listened for a minute, and was about to go back to sleep before seeing a flurry of blue sparks fly out of the nearby forest. At once, Ash saw the shadow of Articuno It crashed through the leaves and began to soar overhead. It seemed to have realised how early it was too, for it made no sound apart from the faint fluttering of feathers, catching the air in Aritcuno's wings. Ash followed it with its eyes, until it began to circle an area Ash hadn't been yet. It was a Pokémon battleground. Articuno, having seen Ash notice it, flew down into the forest once again. Suddenly, Ash could hear footprints. This time a human's. They seemed to originate from the forest.

Ash discussed what he had seen with the others at breakfast. They, too, shared the shock of hearing Ash had woke up before they had. He led them to the battlepitch he had seen earlier, where he saw Atticus and the rest of Shockbuster. Ash then asked for something he'd been meaning to ask since finding out who he is.

"Do you mind if we have a battle?"

Atticus did not seem at all surprised by this, in fact it seemed as if he was to propose the same thing.

"I'd be happy to." he replied, "I can't wait to see how you've grown.

Ash and Atticus took a side of the pitch each. Although it was later on in the day, it seemed as quiet as it was when Ash awoke.

"Hawlucha, I choose you!"

The pokeball was thrust forward, brimming with light, which slowly turned into a small humanoid form, and Hawlucha was thus called out.

"Go for it Mudsdale!"

The same white light began to emit from Atticus' pokeball, but far more of it. It formed a large body with four huge legs and a small tail snuck out at the back. A large creature with a red and black pallor and menacing, unblinking eyes was now staring at the small, flighty Hawlucha.

"Who's that Pokémon?" Ash wondered aloud, as he pulled out his Pokedex:

 _MUDSDALE:the Draft Horse Pokémon:_

 _Its heavy, mud-covered kicks are its best means of attack, and it can reduce large trucks to scrap without breaking a sweat._

Hawlucha must not have heard this, for he seemed happy to fight such a large opponent.

"I've never seen a Pokémon like that before!" Ash said, still in awe at the thing's size.

"Yes, they're found in the Alola region," Atticus replied with a hint of smugness in his voice, "Mudsdale, use High Horsepower!"

"Dodge it, quick!"

Hawlucha only had a moment to avoid a large blur speed past him and skid to the side, leaving behind a massive trail of dust.

Serena coughed as the dust began to clear. A crowd was beginning to watch the match feverently.

"Hawlucha, use Aerial Ace!"

With a boost, Hawlucha launched into the air at breakneck speed, and hammered himself into Mudsdale before he had time to dodge.

"Not bad," Atticus said, looking surprised at the Hawlucha's speed. "How about this?!"

On and on the battle went, with Hawlucha breaking through every rock and charge Mudsale sent at him, but Mudsdale was equally adept at narrowly escaping his opponent's punches and kicks, despite the brite's size. The two moved with such ferocity across the pitch so that it looked like one of them had used sandstorm. At last, Atticus yelled over the swarming dust,

"Now! Use Earthquake!"

And the dust scattered. Mudsdale stood still. After what seemed like an aeon, the beast's front legs were thrust into the air, and slammed into the ground, which began to crack open. The great hole lurched towards Hawlucha, who tried to fly up, but was swayed from side to side so much that he could not kick off from the ground. Ash quickly realised this, and yelled at the top of his lungs:

"Get behind them!"

At this, the red and white (and brown, thanks to the dust) blur began to leap from one side of the crack to the other, Mudsdale following it with its eyes, until the streak ducked underneath him, and Mudsdale felt a very large kick on its underbelly, sending it a few inches into the air, with it landing back down with a thud. Mudsdale looked disoriented, it swayed towards the wall of a house near the pitch. Suddenly, something fell from the roof of the house and hit Mudsdale over the head with a loud CLANG . At this, the brute keeled over onto the floor. Ash and Atticus, both surprised, ran over to the downed Pokémon to see what had struck it. It was quite large and silver, and looked like a ball. On closer inspection, it seemed to have four black legs and a tail. At last, they saw two yellow eyes eminating from it. It was a Bagon.

The Bagon rocked back, and hoisted itself back onto its feet. Ash bent down next to it.

"Are you okay? You had a nasty drop."

While it could not reply with words, it nodded, yet proceeded to trip over on walking away.

"Why don't we get it and Mudsdale to a Pokémon Center?" Atticus suggested, lifting it up into his arms.

"Bagon" it replied, and they set off.

While making their way to the Pokémon center in the village, Atticus noticed something odd. The Bagon seemed to have a tag on its tail, reading:

 _This Pokémon is the property of Victor Vainheart._


End file.
